THE FRAME AND ITS FITTINGS 39 



combs shall be built within the frames, thus making 

 every comb movable and interchangeable ; and lastly, 

 we save the bees an enormous amount of labour by 

 providing them with this raw material, the "founda- 

 tion" upon which they subsequently build their 

 cells. 



That this is no small economy will be readily under- 

 stood when it is borne in mind that, as previously 

 stated, to produce one pound of wax, bees require to 

 consume on an average something like fifteen pounds 

 of honey. 



From the time of Mehring, a German, who in 1857 

 invented and first used 

 foundation, numerous 

 patents have been issued 

 relating to the manu- 

 facture of this com- 

 modity, many of them 

 more curious than practi- 

 cal, artifical combs hav- 

 ing been made from 

 wood, iron, sheet tin, 

 etc., coated with wax. 

 The foundation in use at 

 the present day is of 

 two varieties, distinguished by the names of their 

 inventors, A. J. Root and E. B. Weed, and known 

 as "Root" foundation or "Weed" foundation, as 

 the case may be. Both are excellent. The Weed 

 foundation being rolled under much greater pressure 

 than that employed in the Root process, is in 

 consequence much tougher, and is more likely to 

 bear inexperienced handling at the hands of the 

 novice. 



Foundation is graded according to the number of 

 sheets required to weigh a pound. Not more than 



COMB FOUNDATION 



